The Northeast Ohio Multipurpose Arthritis Center is designed to meet the needs of a target population of over 4 million people in the northeast Ohio area. Two medical schools, Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (NEOUCOM) have combined to coordinate resources for this Center activity in association with community hospitals already affiliated with these academic institutions. Center activities include coordinated programs in education, clinical and basic research, and community outreach programs. Evaluation and community input are major program considerations. Specific Center activities include curriculum development for undergraduate medical education and development of postgraduate educational resources in rheumatology at NEOUCOM, on-site educational programs and rheumatology unit training rotations for Family Medicine house officers coordinated with the Department of Family Medicine, development of educational skills for educators in rheumatology directed to needs of physicians, allied health professionals, patient and lay populations, development of new audiovisual programs into an integrated resource teaching library, outreach programs to urban clinics to provide secondary and tertiary care resources in a primary care setting, and expanded ongoing research.